Everything Entertainment

YouTube for Animal Lovers

15 Different YouTube Channels to Enjoy for Cute and Funny Dogs, Cats, Birds, Hamsters and More.

Watching pets on Youtube can be relaxing and peaceful whether you are a pet owner or not. It’s one way to enjoy some very endearing animals. It wouldn’t be practical for most of us to own one of each of the animals featured below, but Youtube brings us closer to observing all of their funny antics.

These videos are good therapy if you need relaxation. I have used them to unwind when I have headache or have trouble sleeping. Some of these videos are real life adventures with pets and owners while others are pure fantasy — creative stories with animals doing “human” things. Others offer good information for pet owners. A few of these channels have varied content that don’t all fall into one of those categories, although the examples I selected are entertaining.

The videos are of varying length, some short and some a bit longer. You may want to save some to watch later or create a playlist.

Crusoe the Dachshund

Crusoe the Dachshund is involved in a lot of story episodes with his sidekicks, sister Daphne and cousin Oakley. Voice actors speak for the doggos as they go about some very human activities. In this episode, Oakley has a date with a Yorkie and gets a little dating advice from Crusoe and Daphne.

Other episodes include some parodies of movies like Home Alone, Jurassic Park and Ghostbusters, police and crime adventures, hobby fun, obstacle courses, birthday celebrations and more creative content than I can name.

SIMI TV

This channel combines miniature making and fun with hamsters. First, you watch as the Youtuber creates cardboard miniature sets and then enjoy as his hamster interacts with and has fun exploring the set. In this episode, the little hamster has fun on a cardboard playground equipped with seesaws, swings and motorized merry go round, with plenty of hamster snacks sprinkled here and there. In other episodes, the hamster visits a miniature hotel, Tom and Jerry style house, sushi bar and more.

Vlog After College (with Corgi Gatsby)

Gatsby the Corgi has more real life adventures with his owner Ryen. In fact, Ryen’s vlogs can contain all kinds of content like cooking and recipes, ukulele playing and fitness. Still, Gatsby is a big part of each vlog, and you can enjoy watching these two play in a park or at home, go on walking adventures, go shopping for dog toys, even cooking dog-friendly meals or enjoying a burger splurge.

Aaron’s Animals

Aaron’s Animals seems to be creative stories told with real animals but with the help of some special effects and animation. Videos feature cats, a pug dog, ducklings and a mouse. The stories are pretty varied from “A dog and cat road trip” to a cat cooking show and many more fun episodes.

Emma Massingale (With Mini Ponies)

Below is one of the more whimsical videos on Emma Massingale’s channel, where two dogs, a cat, a pig and a miniature pony get the spa treatment, including nail treatments, facial masks and hot stone massage. Emma has more content along this line but also features more down-to-earth adventures with her animals like hiking with her mini ponies or rafting while pulled by black stallions.

Topi the Corgi

Topi the Corgi does a variety of human activities on his channel. These might include acting as a lifeguard or a surgeon, working in construction or as a police officer. His occasional sidekicks are these two little long-haired chihuahuas who join him in the camping fun below.

Tucker Budzyn

This golden retriever’s videos are all captioned hilariously with the new dog lingo of the Internet. On this channel, you can watch as he tries new foods and treats, interacts with new toys or does quirky behavior (like trying to climb in the bath tub with his owner.) Reading his inner commentary is half the fun. In the episode below, I enjoyed seeing him interact with a mechanical toy roach where it seems he can’t decide whether he wants to attack it or run away from it.

The Secret Life of My Hamster

The “dangerous” hamster maze in the video below might look suspiciously like animal cruelty at first glance, but this contraption with all its traps is made from harmless cardboard. Other videos from this channel feature creative mazes, obstacle courses, races and even a parkour course for hamsters. A few of these have gaming themes like Minecraft and Super Mario Brothers.

Griffin the Frenchie

Griffin the Frenchie and his sister Haru have a variety of interesting experiences with their owners. They try out different snacks, show off how well trained they are as well as their behavior quirks, try out strange gadgets for dogs or explore a 24 hour dog grooming cafe, among other things. They also try intellectual puzzles and obstacle courses. In the video below, the two Frenchies enjoy a kiddie pool, some bubbles and watermelon.

Erin’s Ark

Erin has a lot of adorable animals in her care including guinea pigs (about 11 of them,) skinny pigs, bunnies, gerbils, hamsters, a dog and a cat. That might sound like animal hoarding, but Erin lives on a farm, and all of her animals have quality hutches and homes, lots of space and plenty of tender loving care. Erin has some informative videos for owners of small animals, but I find it peaceful to watch her go about her routine with the animals, feeding all of them or making changes to their abodes.

Peekaboo Parrots

There have been several parrots of different varieties on this channel, but the star seems to be Bowie, the Indian ringneck parakeet. He has a voice just like Elmo, and one of his favorite phrases is “Tickle, tickle,” because that’s what his owner tells him when she scratches his head. The doggy of the household, Pai Mei, has his own channel.

What About Bunny

This amazing sheepadoodle named Bunny has been trained to use buttons to communicate. The buttons are from Fluent Pet and pronounce words when they are pressed. They are arranged in interlocking tiles on the floor. There are other video examples that better introduce the system, but I thought this particular video below gives pretty good evidence that Bunny understands what she is communicating.

Major Hamster and Friends

Major Hamster and Friends is another channel that combines ingenious contraptions, story telling and animals. In this one, Major Hamster runs in his wheel, sending out marble missiles against the tank army of his frenemy, the cat. Videos show a variety of challenges for Major Hamster and his friends with mazes, obstacle courses, remote control cars and contraptions involving dominoes and marbles with adventures themed after dinosaurs, robots, zombies, volcanoes and more. Major Hamster’s friends include a cat, dog, chinchilla, rat and bunny.

Tiny Hamster Official

One of the major themes on this channel is tiny food. You can watch this hamster feasting on tiny burritos, tiny barbecue or in this video, tiny tiki party fare, and in fun, miniature settings. Although “hamster” is the only animal listed in the channel’s title, you will find a few others here including bunnies, a chameleon and a hedgehog.

Bini the Bunny

Bini the Bunny has been trained to do a number of cool tricks like paint, play basketball with a small ball and net, work a dustbuster style vacuum cleaner or a small vending machine that dispenses carrots. You can also watch the channel for helpful information on keeping a bunny as a pet.

I hope I have introduced you to some fun animal viewing on Youtube. Please, tell me which of these is your favorite.

Everything Entertainment, Music and Musicians

The Beauty of Great Music

I found this music survey on a blogger friend’s post over at ARHtistic License. She also found it elsewhere here at A Guy Called Bloke. I thought it would be fun to answer myself.

1.) How important is music in your life?

I would say it’s fairly important. I sing in a church choir — currently on break due to the pandemic — and have sung in choirs or musical groups pretty much continuously since I was a high school freshman.

Below is a song I’ve sung with my church choir. (This isn’t my choir performing.)

It’s taken me a long time to get to this point, but I have recently been venturing out into solos. I took a few music electives in college including private voice lessons. Music can inspire me in different ways for different things that I do.

2) What is your favorite type of music and what is your least favorite?

I agree with Andrea of ARHtistic License that I like all sorts of music. This is partly what makes it difficult to define my tastes to someone else or even to myself at times. Lately, I listen to a lot of classical, jazz, folk or folk rock, so maybe those are favorite categories, although those are fairly broad categories. I also like world music, opera and “popera”/classical crossover music. I listen to music in a bunch of different categories and from different time periods, including decades that predate me.

To make things more confusing, I also like music that is a fusion of different styles …

or songs that have been flipped from one style to another.

Earlier, I would say that heavy metal was my least favorite style of music, and that is still, probably, mostly true. I discovered that Trans-Siberian Orchestra, a band I like, is considered “symphonic metal,” so there are exceptions. I’ve also found I can appreciate some operatic, symphonic or folk metal, but I explore these cautiously, because the themes are often dark or pagan. Sound wise, these can be interesting. Rap is probably not something I would normally listen to, but there have been exceptions there too. I wouldn’t listen to “cop killer rap” or something that was full of curse words, etc.

There are songs or singers I don’t really like even under the categories I like the most, so my interests are broad and yet discerning. As I said, it is difficult to pin down.

3) Do you have a music collection or do you listen to whatever on whatever?

I do have a CD collection, but lately, I listen to more music on YouTube or Pandora radio or on Alexa. YouTube is how I discovered Peter Hollens and his acapella multitracking videos …

and this crazy woman, Malinda Kathleen Reese, and her funny Mad Lib style Google Translate Sings videos.

In the late ’90s, I worked in a bookstore. A coworker of mine was very interested in ska music, and, at the time, I thought it wasn’t for me. Then, in more recent times, I learned that one of the Wii Just Dance songs I like a lot is from a ska band. So, I went on a YouTube binge discovering ska songs I like.

One rock subgenre I like is surf rock. I kind of associate that style with the ’60s, but YouTube helped me discover a current band that is creating new music in that style. You can see though that they are going with a retro ’60s feel with their hair, outfits and setting.

4) Are you a singer, hummer or whistler?

Yes, I would say I do all three at different times, but I try not to be bothersome to those around me by humming or whistling. I do remember whistling absentmindedly recently, and my dad suddenly turning to me.

This song has a pretty whistled chorus …

5) Show through links your five best songs.

This is a hard one. It’s not that I don’t have favorites. It’s just hard to narrow it down to what are the top ones out of all the favorites. Since my musical interests are fairly wide, it’s also hard to compare apples to oranges, favorites in different categories. I will link different picks throughout this post, which will, hopefully, give you some idea. I do think of “Rhapsody in Blue” by Gershwin as my favorite classical/orchestral piece.

7) Have you ever been to an outdoor concert?

Yes. I don’t think I’ve ever been to a major concert that was outdoors, but, as a reporter, I sometimes covered local outdoor concerts. Some towns sponsored outdoor summer series of concerts, and I attended some of them and wrote about them. Right now, I’m having difficulty remembering which groups I saw perform, but I know I saw a local band called The Infernos.

8) Do you ever go out to see music live? When was the last time you went to a concert/gig?

Maybe, a month or two ago, I went with a friend to an outdoor church worship band experience. I’m not sure it was exactly a concert. It was more of an interactive singalong. Since then, a brass band performed, again outdoors, at my own church, but, sadly, I had a migraine and missed it.

8) Do you sometimes feel like dancing when you hear music? Under what circumstances, do you dance?

I love dance fitness. I have tried dance fitness from DVDs or videos in many different styles: Latin, jazz, ballet, ballroom, country line dance, hip hop, reggae, African, disco, retro, club, etc. However, I’m an introvert, and, for me, dancing is something I do alone for my own health and happiness. The chances of me breaking out the dance moves at a crowded party are pretty much nil. If you happen to catch me in the right mood with a small circle of friends, you might see me dance. If I’m in a good dance fitness habit, I am more and more inclined to want to dance when I hear music. I might spontaneously make up my own choreography if I’m alone. I have even semi-danced in the grocery store aisle while shopping, but my introverted self would only do this if I was alone in the aisle.

9) When do you listen to music?

I would probably listen to music more often if I didn’t need to worry about bothering anyone else with it. I’ve been having trouble lately with headphones too. I do often listen to music while I’m dressing and getting ready for the day (something energizing,) while I’m exercising (also energizing,) when I’m relaxing before bed (something mellow) or even to help me sleep, (something very, very mellow.) For a while there, I had Alexa playing music for me while I was cooking. You can ask her to play “music for cooking,” and she comes up with some interesting playlists.

This is a funny, food-themed jazz song “she” played for me one time while I was cooking.

10) If you answered yes to 6 & 7 — who did you go and see?

I answered these as parts of 6 and 7. I’ve seen Amy Grant, Michael W. Smith, Casting Crowns, Fernando Ortega, a few others.

11) Is there a song that makes you emotional?

There are probably several songs that would be fitting, but the first one that came to mind when I thought about it was “Bring Him Home” from Les Miserables.

12) Do you feel that you have a special connection with some types of music? Which types?

Hhhhmm…. I think that would be folk. I’m interested in several subgenres under this umbrella. I think that if were a songwriter, my songs would fall under this category. As a singer also, I think lyrical songs in this category would suit my voice.

Lately, I’m enjoying some modern folk groups/singers like The Lumineers.

13) Have you ever tried singing in a karaoke bar? What was that experience like?

As I’ve explained, I have had some private voice lessons in college and have sung in choirs for years. More recently, I have begun venturing out in some solo singing, but it took me a while to overcome my stage nerves. (I can’t say I’m completely rid of them yet.) I have gone out with friends once or twice for karaoke, not so much to a karaoke bar but a karaoke pizza place. I didn’t get up the courage to sing, but a friend of mine sang and gave a pretty good Cher impression.

14) Do you listen to music when writing? If so which?

I don’t often listen to music when writing. I seem to need quiet to focus. If I do listen to music, it would be instrumentals, either classical, movie soundtracks or YouTube playlists created for writing. There are songs with lyrics that have inspired my writing, but I will listen to those right before writing a scene, not really simultaneously.

Movie soundtracks can be inspirational. I really enjoyed the soundtrack to The Man from U.N.C.L.E, the 2015 movie. It might help with certain creative stages like imagining the action scene, but I think, would be a little too exciting for me for the actual typing and sentence forming.

15) Have you ever gone to see a musical? Provide link please.

I am actually quite a musical enthusiast, which is interesting, because I forgot to even mention this category in the opening of this post. I could have gone back and edited that, but I thought it was more interesting to take note of that omission and the complication of giving an overview of my interests.

I’ve seen several musicals at New Jersey Performing Arts Center. These include The King and I, The Sound of Music and The Fiddler on the Roof. I saw Les Miserables live in London. A friend and I went to see two Disney plays on Broadway: Mary Poppins and The Lion King. I saw Big River, based on Huck Finn, at another playhouse local to me. Additionally, I’ve seen several others in smaller high school productions, such as Bye Bye Birdie.

16) Do you know all the lyrics to all the music that you listen to?

I have a pretty good memory for lyrics, but I can’t say I have a perfect memory for it. I’d probably be fairly decent at a game that asked you to remember lyric to songs … provided I was familiar with the song.

17) When you are listening to music — are you listening to the music itself or the lyrics too?

It depends on how distracted I am, if I am listening to music while doing other things. I listen to both. I can sometimes enjoy simple songs with simple lyrics, but the writer in me enjoys music with more complex lyrics. I can also be pretty analytical of songs and their meanings, even with songs I don’t particularly like.

18) Do you listen to music when you go cycling/jogging or working out at the gym? [or any other physical activity?]

Yes. I do a lot of YouTube workouts. Sometimes, the fitness instructors don’t have the license to use very interesting music in their workouts, so I’ll find my own music to play on another tab.

19) Many operas are in French, Italian or German. If you listen to opera, do you understand the libretto (text) or are you happy to get the main idea (gist)?

A little bit of both. I actually enjoy a lot of different music in foreign languages, not just opera, and it isn’t completely necessary for me to understand everything to appreciate it. I do appreciate an English translation and will often look it up if it’s not provided. I have studied both French and German so know a little of both. I’ve never studied Italian but have picked up on a few words and phrases from Italian restaurant menus and studying librettos side by side with the English translation. Some years ago, I saw a Metropolitan Opera film of Les Comtes d’Hoffmann by Jacques Offenbach. I liked it so well that I borrowed the soundtrack from the library. Because French was already somewhat familiar, after looking at the French and English side by side, I found it much easier to understand than other operas.

This is just an aria from that opera in a concert format, but I love this one with a mechanical doll that winds down and has to be wound up again.

Here is another foreign language song, in Arabic, that was just recommended to me by YouTube. It sounds so different from western music but so pretty. She has a lovely voice. The English translation is provided.

20) Are you deleting any questions? If so, which ones?

This one … I guess.

21) Do you enjoy watching music videos? What music videos do you enjoy watching most?

I think it should be obvious by now that the simple answer to that question is “yes.” Some music “videos” on YouTube aren’t really videos at all, just the sound with a still picture as in the video I posted for the soundtrack of The Man from U.N.C.L.E. It’s always fun when you can find a music video that has great music and is visually interesting. I like Katie Melua and think she has a unique quality to her voice. This video is interesting, and someone has commented that the effects are odd. I guess it is a bit surreal, but I think it is meant to represent her traveling in her mind/dreams.

Everything Entertainment, Music and Musicians

Musical Wanderings

Interesting Cultural and Musical Mashups

With such things as Pandora radio and YouTube making recommendations based on music you’ve played or liked, your musical wanderings can sometimes take you to some interesting places, introducing you to new artists and new songs, possibly even new instruments or cultures. The more curious you are and open to new things, the more you will be introduced to more interesting new sounds.

This playlist features songs that have some relationship to folk or world music but aren’t purely so (with the exception of the first one.) It may be modern songs played with traditional instruments or western songs played with eastern instruments or some other mashup of cultural sounds. This first one by the Gothard Sisters is not so much of a mashup or twist, but it fits the theme of “wandering” so well, with the video featuring scenes from the group’s world travels.

In this next one, YouTuber Luna plays an American rock song, “Riders on the Storm” by the Doors on a gayageum, a traditional Korean instrument with 12 strings. It really has an interesting sound that some commenters described as “spooky.” It appears she had to play three different parts at separate times and do some overdubbing.

I’ve seen a few videos now from Paola Hermosin, Spanish guitarist. She is not just a “Spanish guitarist” in the sense of guitar style. She is also from Seville, Spain. Although all of her introductions are in Spanish, there are English subtitles, and I always learn miniature lessons on music history, composers and singers and song structure. In this one, she has arranged a song composed for the koto, a Japanese instrument somewhat similar to the gayageum, for the guitar.

This YouTuber, who calls herself Alina Gingertail, is from Russia. She is a multi-instrumentalist who plays all sorts of interesting traditional and folk instruments. She often covers video game theme music.

You would expect a bagpiper to come from Scotland or Ireland or to be someone with that heritage. You wouldn’t expect one to come from India, where this bagpiper, who calls herself the Snake Charmer, does. In this original song, she pays tribute to both Irish and Punjabi culture and even collaborates with a rapper, Raoul Kerr. I love watching all of the traditional dancing from both cultures.

I first discovered Twelve Girls Band from China in a PBS special. They play western music with traditional Chinese instruments. The instruments played include the erhu, a two-stringed fiddle, the pipa, a four-stringed instrument, the zhongruan, also known as a moon guitar, the dizi, a traverse flute, the yangqin, a hammered dulcimer, the guzheng, a zither, and the duxianqin, a one string plucked instrument. Here, they cover “El Condor Pasa” made famous in the English speaking world by Simon & Garfunkel, but the song has an older history than the folk duo. It was composed by a Peruvian composer, Daniel Alombia Rombles, in 1913. The Simon & Garfunkel version featured a different folk instrument, the pan flute, which originated in ancient Mayan and Incan civilization.

Patty Gurdy plays a hurdy gurdy. I’ve met a lot of people who play instruments, but I can’t say I’ve ever met someone who can play the hurdy gurdy. It’s a folk instrument that is hand cranked to turn a rosined wheel against strings. Keyboard buttons also press small wedges against strings. In this video, Patty Gurdy covers an ’80s song by the Eurythmics, “Sweet Dreams.”

The next video is from B&B Project, a duo from Ukraine, who seek to popularize their folk instruments, the bandura and button accordion. Here, they cover “Clubbed to Death” from The Matrix soundtrack.

Below is one of the most unusual yet, a Mongolian folk metal band, The Hu, (not be confused with The Who.) They use a singing technique called Mongolian throat singing, where the singer can sing more than one note at once.

I first got acquainted with music by Ahmed Alshaiba when he collaborated with Peter Hollens. Alshaiba is a Yemenite, and he often covers pop songs, giving them a bit of a Middle Eastern sound, with his oud and guitar. Here he covers “Blinding Lights” by the Weeknd.

Alex Boye is originally from London, England and now living in the U.S. He was born to Nigerian parents and likes to perform what he calls Africanized covers of pop songs. Here, he plays “Royals” by Lorde and has a little fun with African tribal masquerade and a little humor with a Christmas wreath. I discovered him on YouTube, but at that point, he had already gained some fame on America’s Got Talent. I love his harmonies on this one.

I first heard this cover of “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” by Regina Spektor on one of my Pandora radio station, and I tuned in. It almost gave me chills. I’m not sure why. It is not my favorite song by the Beatles, and I’m not sure I agree with the message behind it. I think it’s partly due to the beauty of Spektor’s voice. This version with its unique Japanese instrumentation also seems oddly emotive. It was made for the soundtrack of Kubo and the Two Strings, a movie I’ve never seen. The song features the shamisen, a three stringed Japanese instrument.

Perhaps, I am more open than the average person to world sounds, but I hope you enjoyed your tour of interesting musical mashups. Which did you find the most interesting? Which did you like hearing the best?

Everything Entertainment

Cuteness Overload — Babies and Dogs Reacting to Movies and Music

Sensitivity can be a really good thing. Reading and the arts help nurture our ability to empathize with others. Watch these babies and dogs be moved by music and movies.

Baby emotionally moved by Bocelli song to Elmo

What a beautiful baby. He lights up with joy as Elmo sings and seems moved almost to tears by Bocelli’s singing.

French bulldogs’ adorable reaction to saddest scene in “Inside Out.”

I’ve been following these Frenchies, Griffin and Haru, for a while. Is it just coincidence that they decide to cuddle at that moment? Some dogs don’t seem to notice TV. I’ve observed some of the dogs I care for reacting to the TV, especially when there are dogs or other animals on the screen. Just wait until the last video. It seems it is possible for dogs to follow some of the action and to empathize.

Baby reacts to “Moonlight Sonata.”

This little boy had an emotional reaction to hearing his older sister play “Moonlight Sonata” at her recital. I think there is an artist in this boy. One of the commenters on YouTube suggested he should take piano lessons himself when he is old enough. I think that perhaps he is right.

Adorable dog reacts in cutest way to “Lion King’s” saddest scene.

Before seeing this, I really didn’t know that it was possible for a dog to understand and follow what is going on in an abstract scene on TV. This dog really seems to have some understanding of what he is watching and is sympathizing so much with Simba. No wonder dogs are so sensitive to our emotions and seek to comfort us when we are sick or sad.

We all need sensitive souls and the ability to empathize. I hope this touches you and makes you smile.

Everything Entertainment, Music and Musicians, Uncategorized

The Random Jukebox That Is My Head

The Songs That Get Stuck in my Head … or just Pop Up Randomly

With my busy life lately, I have not been taking that much time to listen to music for pleasure. This, apparently, has not stopped my brain from mentally replaying songs that are familiar to it, as I’m going to bed, just waking up, even in the middle of my sleep or just at random times during the day. It remembers songs from TV commercials, songs playing on the radio in stores while I’m shopping or sometimes just pulls songs from the mental archives that I don’t remember hearing recently. It might even decide to put on “repeat” a song I don’t particularly like. I find music hard to ignore when I hear it. My brain just tends to tune in whenever I hear it, whether I particularly like it or not.

So, I started making a list of the songs that either popped into my head or repeatedly played mentally over the past few days. It’s quite a list: ’70s pop, Rodgers & Hammerstein, Celtic, Christian contemporary, ’80s New Wave in French language … I think I might be the only quirky ding dong in the universe whose brain could come up with this particular list. I almost wondered if this was too embarrassing to post, and it reminded me of the meme below.

So, here is the first one, “I Think I Love You” by David Cassidy from Partridge Family. I do remember how it got started. I recently heard this while food shopping, and it hasn’t fully left my brain since. I do happen to like it. It’s sweet and innocent and tells a little story. Though I remember watching the show as a kid, I’m not sure that I remember the song from then. I think I was reminded of it some time later, probably from listening to oldies radio.

A short time later, my brain pulled up this one from Brady Bunch, and I thought, “Really, brain?” Again, I watched the show as a kid but was reminded of this song since from a friend who is a pop culture aficionado. Unlike David Cassidy, the Brady kids aren’t exactly known for their hit songs. It may have been some mental association between Partridge Family and Brady Bunch that brought this up in my mind, but then, I remembered that there was another reason why this song would pop up. I’ve been hearing a snippet of it in a recent 2020 commercial. I couldn’t recall which one, but, with help from the Internet, I found it, a Perdue chicken commercial. Now, I am wondering how many people have heard the song from the commercial without knowing its Brady Bunch origins? I don’t believe the commercial has the original Brady kid voices though. Some of the lyrics do seem to fit the pandemic, “I just can’t stay inside all day. I’ve got to get out and get some of those rays.”

Okay, so, now we are out of the ’70s. Mandisa’s “Overcomer” was mentally playing in my head as I was waking up one morning. It’s a song I heard a lot on Christian radio when it was a new hit, 2013. I don’t remember hearing it recently, but it was most definitely not the worst song to wake up thinking about. I’ve had a few struggles lately, caretaking for parents. Both Dad and I were bitten by a dog recently, and Dad has now had two surgeries to close the wound and cover it with skin. These positive thoughts are certainly welcome.

This Loreena McKennitt song, “The Highwayman,” was on a playlist I used to help me to sleep, and, oddly enough, my sleeping brain began a mental playback on another night without any help from the actual music playing. It’s a long storytelling song, so you might wonder how much of it my sleeping brain could reproduce. I’m not sure. Maybe, it was one section of it on repeat, but it seems to me my brain recalled a full sound, the voice and instruments.

This next one is an odd one. I am a bit of a musical theater enthusiast, but State Fair is not one of the more popular Rodgers & Hammerstein musicals, and its title song is also not the most popular of Broadway style songs. Still, out of nowhere, this little piece of music came to mind, “Our state fair is the best state fair. Don’t miss it. Don’t even be late.” I couldn’t recall any other words, but there it was.

I enjoy this song from South Pacific, but the way it came to mind was very odd. What I remembered first was this little dramatic orchestral section that follows her beginning phrases in the song, say, right after “my faith in romance.” That part came to my mind alone, and I had to think hard to remember why this orchestral bit was so familiar and in what song it belonged.

This next one is in a completely different category, an ’80s New Wave song in French. I was not familiar with it in the ’80s but learned of it more recently through Wii Just Dance games. I don’t think this particular song is available on U.S. versions of the game, but I found the Just Dance song on YouTube. My interest in French language led me to look up the French lyrics and the English translation and then the original video and the story behind the song. By the time I did all this, I gained more and more of an appreciation of the song. The whole video has a bit of a surrealist feel. In spite of its bright colors and costumes and dancing, the subject matter is rather dark. It’s about a woman who died from cancer, a friend of the band and a dancer. The rhythmic beginning and more lyrical sections of the song express a celebration of the woman’s life, but the more aggressive sounding section speaks more bluntly about death, “It is cancer that has assassinated you …” There are a few hints in the video of the sad, dark content: bones used as percussion instruments, a splash of red paint, tears in the lead singer’s eyes. I do have an appreciation for it but feel that an English version would feel too blunt for me, rather than hearing it through the filter of a foreign language.

I have quite mixed feelings about the next one, Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.” Melodically, it’s very pleasing. Lyric-wise, it is cryptic. I’m not sure which rendition became familiar to me first. I’ve listened to both the Leonard Cohen version and the Jeff Buckley version, and neither seem particularly familiar. Lately, I’ve heard renditions by several artists and bands I like including Pentatonix. In spite of its title and mixed Bible references to David and Bathsheba and Samson and Delilah, it is not essentially a religious song and does not belong on either a Christmas album or album of sacred arias. I’ve seen it on both. It seems to be more about a human relationship, and the expression, “Hallelujah” which literally means “Praise to the Lord,” does not seem sincere to me in its literal meaning. After all, the writer expresses, “Maybe there’s a God above” and seems even in doubt about this basic faith. Still, I like to hear it sometimes and puzzle over the artist’s meaning. This article in Rolling Stone might give some enlightenment.

I remembered that a friend and I were riding together in a car and a version of this with more Christian lyrics came on the radio. The one below may have been the one we heard. If you are a person of faith, or even if you aren’t, give this one a listen. This version would be appropriate on a Christmas album.

And, similarly, here is an Easter version.